The old boats from the Netherlands

A skûtsje (Frisian for 'boat') is a wooden or steel Frisian tjalk built for the transport of cargo in Friesland. Depending on the season, they transported manure, terpaardaard, potatoes and other bulk goods. The skipper and his family lived aboard the skûtsje. These sailing ships were built from the 18th century until around 1930. The length is 12 to 20 m. The width depends on the dimensions of bridges and locks in the sailing area and is on average 3.5 m, a maximum of four meters. The ships were built for sailing and were therefore not originally equipped with an engine. Many skûtsjes were equipped with auxiliary engines in the course of the 1920s and 1930s, but the sails were replaced by engines only after the Second World War. The skûtsjes disappeared from the water as a cargo ship when the motorized inland vessels that could take hundreds of tons of cargo with them took over their role. Many skûtsjes were subsequently converted into homes on the water